Spicy crispy mussels, shrimp spring rolls and other Vask addictions

MILLIE: The very first time I heard about Vask, I already wanted to go. Although I’d heard mixed reviews, I decided to come with an open mind, together with my best friend Verne.

Vask offers a selection of unique tapas or Spanish pica-picas, which are very much in fashion these days. In Los Angeles, for example, Verne and I dined at The Bazaar, the restaurant of celebrity Spanish chef Jose Andres, who popularized small plates. Patrons seem to enjoy it as it encourages conversation while they savor light meals and good wine.

Since my first Vask experience last year, I have been back at least three times and am happy and contented after each visit. The only reason we never featured it is because Karla and I never had a chance to dine there together, until she finally went with her blogger friends last week.

Each time Verne and I dine at Vask, we only stay in the casual dining place, hesitant to dine in the degustation room as we were warned it was quite expensive.  The menu offers a variety of traditional or classic tapas as well as new creations that are absolutely divine!

We order different tapas each time but the ones I’ve truly enjoyed were the Curve crispy prawns with Iberian ham, Emmenthal cheese and Cava mango chutney and the canapés with salmon and crab tartare.

A most enjoyable tapas dish is the lubina asada con bulgur se hongos, which is grilled sea bass with porcini bulgur wheat.

The 48° confit bacalao con pipermaela, garlic alioli and crispy jamon Iberico is, likewise, a tasty and enjoyable item. During our recent visit last week with another friend from Los Angeles, Emmy Mendoza, we sampled the very appetizing US tenderloin cubes with mushroom textures.

Verne’s favorites are the foie terrine done with Vask raspberry jam and brioche crackers and the delightful foie gras on mango toast.  Because we both like cheese, we once ordered a heavenly cheese platter assortment with a soft and buttery goat cheese called Couronne Lochoise, a soft and creamy Brillat-Savarin, semi-hard sheep cheese called Tomme Brulee and the soft and pressed sable Boulannais with beer-washed rind.

KARLA: Last week, I finally got the opportunity to dine at Vask through the invitation of Spanky Enriquez and Jean Fernando. We started off the evening with some sunset cocktails on The Deck. I sampled the signature rum-infused cocktail with triple sec, apple sour and apple juice called Vask while admiring the spoon and fork seesaw, the magnificent sunset and later on that evening, the sky and the city lights. We later on moved into the casual dining area and were given a kitchen tour by executive chef Jose Luis Gonzalez, soon followed by a spread of pintxos. We were served oyster mushrooms with Parmesan shavings, sous-vide tuna with piqui peppers and caramelized onions, air-cured Wagyu and chimichurri sauce and my two favorites, the smoked salmon with crab tartar and jamon and Parmesan mousse.

More tapas were served starting with croquetas de jamon y pollo and croquetas de gambas. They were all very good, especially since the béchamel sauce that was used for the croquetas was hand-stirred for 2.5 hours. The next plate that came out was the mejillones tigre, or the spicy crispy mussels, which I really liked considering I’m not a big mussel fan. I normally can only have a couple of pieces, but the nice heat on this dish was actually kind of addicting. By this time, I was sipping on the Granada, a cocktail made of basil-infused rum, triple sec, pomegranate juice and ginger.

Next up was another one of my favorites, the shrimp spring roll with jamon Iberico and Jerez reduction. My mom and Tita Verne had also tried this on a separate occasion and we both agree that it was good. Next came the rabas or calamares with basil mayonnaise. And finally, the crispy carnitas and in a triangle pastry with sour cream and orange cilantro sauce, topped with ear chicharon.

Next came the plated tapas such as the Wagyu carpaccio with crispy Parmesan, pine nuts and Parmesan ice cream, which was absolutely exquisite. After that, we had the huevos con txistorras, 62° sous-vide egg, chistorra chorizo, breadcrumbs on the sides topped with dates, mushroom and truffle oil. I had to make sure I got a little bit of all the ingredients in each bite. The egg was cooked perfectly for those who like runny yolks. Once you dig in, the yolk gives a creamy and rich addition to the dish, which kind of binds it all together. We then shared small portions of the scallop and squid-ink risotto with a Parmesan crisp and the porcini mushroom risotto and sundried tomatoes.

We then moved on to the main dishes starting with the atun crujiente or crispy tuna with black sesame on a bed of caramelized onions and sautéed foie gras. Next came the bacalao confitade, which my mom also mentioned earlier, followed by a quarter of a cochinillo with green salad and stewed potatoes. And finally, grilled US tenderloin with bacon mashed potato, beetroot and port-wine demi glace.

For dessert, we were sent to The Gallery where, magic was demonstrated to us. Chef Jose Luis, or Chele, as his friends call him, made this coconut sorbet, which was crumbly on the outside and light and fluffy on the inside, definitely a very nice surprise.

Next was taho using sheep milk, caramel tapioca and ginger syrup. After the short demonstration, we were ushered to the lounge called Curve, where soon-to-be-launched recording artist Toni B (Instragram: @tonibmusic) treated us to a sneak peek of her original songs and a brief jamming session featuring Spanky Enriquez and Chuckie Dreyfus.

In the meantime, we were being served more cocktails and more desserts such as the deconstructed lemon cake with pistachio sponge, golden biscuits, Greek yogurt mousse and lemon custard. We were also served the calamansi tart with cream cheese ice cream and dulce de leche caramel lava with financier crumbs, pine nuts, coconut ice cream and mint.

My favorite dessert that night was the Torrija or brioche with milk and anise ice cream, which I dipped in the dulce de leche of the other dessert. Ha ha!

MILLIE: I was definitely glad that Karla had finally tried Vask and that hopefully  we can eat there together soon. Table reservations are in order as the place gets pretty full even on regular days. In fact, they have two seatings: at 6:30 and 8:30 p.m. to allow for early diners who wish to enjoy the view of the sunset while enjoying happy hour. Cheers!

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Vask Manila is located on the 5th Floor, Clipp Center, 11th Avenue corner 39th Street, Bonifacio Global City, 1634 Taguig City. For inquiries and reservations, call 217-6563 or 0915-507-7047.